If you're a parent, chances are you’ve thought about including your young one in the kitchen. It might seem daunting to allow your child into an environment with sharp objects and hot surfaces, but with the right recipes and guidance, cooking can be a fun and safe joint activity.
After about 7 years of age, children really start to refine their motor skills, and their minds are like sponges. By giving a child specific jobs in the kitchen, you can build their confidence while slowly introducing your child to the basics of cooking and kitchen safety. Take a look at some of the delicious recipes that are suitable for you and your child.
French Toast
This breakfast classic is great for kids. Not only can you avoid the stress of knife work for younger children, but they get to crack eggs, make a goopy mixture, and dunk pieces of bread in it before you take over with the stove. You could even take a crack at teaching the flipping motion with a spatula, and who knows, you may have a culinary prodigy on your hands.
Click here for the French Toast recipe.Macaroni & Cheese Casserole
What kid doesn’t love Mac & Cheese? This user-submitted recipe is a slight twist on the classic, but still basic enough that there is plenty of room for you to slip in some more veggies if your kids don’t mind. While you may have to take over the dicing of the onions, there are plenty of things your child can measure out and scatter across the baking dish (the beauty of the casserole)! Depending on the softness of the type of cheese you choose, you could even let your youngster grab a butter knife and cut up cheese cubes for you if you think they’re ready.
Click here for the Macaroni & Cheese Casserole recipe.Peanut Butter Crispy Rice Treats
For the sweet tooth in every child, this is an exciting recipe. While the prep and cook time are low, these treats have to bake for about 1 hour, so this is best left for a rainy weekend day. The time is well worth it – your child can have fun by mixing up and pressing the sticky cereal mixture into the pan. Even better, if you have some fun cookie cutters, your child can create their own rice treat characters to drizzle chocolate and peanut butter over after they cool. Yum!
Click here for the Peanut Butter Crispy Rice Treats recipe.
Hopefully this has given you some ideas as to how to introduce your child to the culinary arts! Good luck!